Between squeaking sneakers and dribbles, a subtle, yet authoritative voice rises up in a cavernous practice gym.

The voice was originally developed in Jersey City, NJ. His first adolescent words evoked characteristics of determination and commitment. It is a voice synonymous with Final Fours and Championships at Duke University. On a muggy June afternoon, the voice carries a presence demanding everyone’s attention.

Close your eyes for a few moments, and you can hear Bobby Hurley.

The Hurley name has been synonymous with basketball for more than four decades. Bob Hurley Sr has manicured a Hall of Fame career centered on 26 state championships at St. Anthony’s High School in Jersey City. And Bobby’s younger brother, Dan, has ascended in the coaching profession from prep school power St. Benedict’s (NJ) to the University of Rhode Island. Their voices are unmistakable on the sidelines.

Still, the sport felt incomplete without Bobby in a leading role. After three years serving as the top assistant and close confidant to Dan at Wagner College and URI, the University at Buffalo chose Bobby to be its face and voice for the program this past March.

“I think we’re in a great sports town,” Bobby says. “I’d like us to carve our niche in Buffalo. We want people to get behind the team and the program and see the type of effort our players put into it. The product on the floor is something the community should be proud of.”

The buzz over basketball in Buffalo faded when the NBA’s Buffalo Braves left for San Diego in 1978. Western New York has produced and showcased a number of pro players. Bob Lanier, a Buffalo native and St. Bonaventure graduate, averaged 20.1 ppg during his Hall of Fame career. Fellow NBA luminary Bob McAdoo galvanized the Braves in the franchise’s early years with his devastating scoring prowess. And then there’s Christian Laettner—an All-American lightning rod in college basketball—who grew up in nearby Angola, starred with Hurley at Duke and lasted 13 seasons in the NBA.

In a city desperately needing a basketball renaissance, Hurley can be the voice to fill the void. Count his players at Buffalo as believers. Bulls sophomore guard Jarryn Skeete remembered what Hurley said when the coach met the team for the first time.

“No more losing,” Skeete recalls. “We are going to win championships. He came from a winning background. He’s going to bring that into our program.”

Words from proven winners are generally embraced as gospel. Will a new voice result in more victories? It is hard to argue with Hurley’s pedigree, going back to high school.

Bill Parcels once, as Hurley Sr frequently quotes, said, “There is winning and there is misery.” With Bobby as his starting point guard at St. Anthony’s, Sr was rarely disappointed.

Bobby helped orchestrate a run of four consecutive New Jersey state titles for the Friars from 1985-89. In Bobby’s senior year, St. Anthony’s went 32-0 and claimed the title as the top high school basketball team in the country. Of the handful of losses in Hurley’s high school career, Sr said two of the games were played at 4 pm, just after the school day concluded.

Foes may have dismissed Bobby’s pedestrian 6-foot and 165-pound frame, but few disrespected his game. Hurley impressed coaches with his poise at the point as he managed the game’s tempo on offense and defense. He would seduce defenders with fearless drives into the lane, setting up teammates for easier buckets or a shot of his own. Between the baselines, Hurley was cunning and in control.

Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski was also mesmerized by Hurley’s abilities. While recruiting Hurley, he saw more than just a foundational player for his budding program.

“He was the guy that I wanted to be like,” says Krzyzewski, a former PG himself at West Point. “He’s the only player I’ve coached where I was one with this kid.”

Entering the 1990s, the Blue Devils were on the verge of becoming an annual National Championship contender. Krzyzewski knew Hurley was a vital piece to what he was building in Durham. It was during defensive drills in an early-season practice where Coach K and former Duke assistant coach Tommy Amaker realized the determination in their freshman point guard.

“I looked at Tommy and I said, Am I nuts, or is this guy working harder than anyone?” Krzyzewski says.

How hard was Hurley going? One of the unmentioned footnotes in Hurley’s legacy at Duke was his dominance on the StairMaster. Krzyzewski remembers that after practice Hurley would hit the StairMaster for a half hour to 45 minutes. The coaching staff would walk past the fitness center and see their tireless starter drenched in sweat. Hurley kept track of his steps.

“He’d leave a note on it telling his teammates what his personal record was,” Krzyzewski says. “He basically said, ‘Let’s see if you knuckleheads can beat it.’ No one ever did.”

Hurley was the facilitator as a freshman on a balanced Blue Devils squad that won 29 games and advanced to the national title game. But UNLV’s Runnin’ Rebels dismantled Duke with a 30-point blowout win for the championship. Hurley did not make a single field goal and was forced into 5 turnovers. It was the culmination of a psychologically draining year—one which Hurley refused to repeat.

“I was a perfectionist,” Hurley says. “I was easily frustrated by turnovers, or if one of my teammates was in position where he shouldn’t be or missed a pass, I would have terrible body language. I had a tendency to get rattled in away games with the crowd and get taken out of my game because I would lose focus. I would imagine coaching me was a roller coaster.”

The triumvirate of Hurley, Laettner and star forward Grant Hill made sure the Blue Devils would avenge their defeat. Duke returned to the Final Four in ’91 and upset UNLV in the national semifinals. Hurley played all 40 minutes, contributing 12 points and a game-high 7 assists. Two days later, Hurley added 12 points and 9 assists as Duke topped Kansas to win its first National Championship.

After their redemption, the Blue Devils ran a season-long repeat. Duke went 34-2 the following season and dropped Big Ten heavyweight Indiana and Michigan’s Fab Five to secure back-to-back titles. Hurley was selected as the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player.

As a senior, Hurley averaged career highs in points (17) and assists (8.2) and earned First-Team All-America status. He cemented his stature as one of college basketball’s backcourt savants after setting the NCAA record for career assists with 1,076. It’s a mark that still stands 20 years later.

“He’s one of the greatest guards to play college basketball,” Krzyzewski says. “He’s very accomplished. If there was a get together of all the greats, he would be in a small room with the rest of those guys.”

Entering the ’93 NBA Draft, Hurley was a Lottery lock. Outside of the championships and personal accolades, there was still chatter about the slight point guard dissecting the original Dream Team in a scrimmage the summer before.

The Sacramento Kings had faith in Hurley, taking him No. 7 overall (the first PG to go off the board). Starting the season’s first 19 games and endorsing signature kicks (search ITZ shoes on YouTube), Hurley’s career was building to a crescendo. He was right where he was supposed to be. Until he wasn’t.

A horrifying car accident ultimately halted Hurley’s NBA career. He was ejected from his truck in the crash that happened 20 years ago this month. His body was broken. Astonishingly, the gritty Jersey guard was able to recover well enough from two collapsed lungs and a fracture in his back to return the following season and he even played a few more. But he never averaged more than 4 points and 3 assists after dodging death. He retired in ’98, and the game gradually left him behind.

“I felt sorry for myself, and I’d get mad thinking about how I let [the accident] affect me,” Hurley says. “I let it take me down and not want to be as big a part of basketball as I wanted to be.”

More than a decade passed and Bobby missed the game. The feeling was mutual. Player and sport weren’t expected to separate this way. When Dan was appointed head coach of Wagner College three years ago, it was time to reunite Bobby with basketball as an assistant coach.

“It’s a family business,” Dan says. “It’s that simple. It’s what we live. It’s what we’ve been exposed to our whole lives. It’s what we know the most about.”

By the summer of 2010, Dan and Bobby Hurley needed direction. They were cruising around New York City and had no idea how to start a Division I program.

The brothers drove through the boroughs for a few hours. They didn’t know which gyms to go to. They had no clue what players they should see. All Dan and Bobby could do was laugh. Wagner won five games the season prior to their arrival. The program needed more than rebuilding. “We eventually went to a restaurant and regrouped,” Dan says. “We put together a recruiting class that would get us to 25 wins.”

Bobby assisted Dan in every manner possible. Together, they set up travel arrangements, created practice and game schedules, ran drills, shagged rebounds and filled water bottles. One time, Bobby even had the unenviable task of telling his younger brother that the team’s 11th man dunked in warm-ups, which earned the team a technical before the game started.

“They banged a three on the opening possession and we were down 5-0 before we touched the ball,” Dan says.

Rhode Island was so impressed with Dan’s head coaching abilities that they hired him after two years at Wagner. Bobby was named associate head coach and aspirations of making the NCAA Tournament together took shape. Their families shared meals and went on vacations to destinations like the Dominican Republic. The Hurleys were inseparable year-round.

Bobby was impressed with his younger brother’s knowledge of the game and leadership with his players. It came as no surprise. Last season at Rhode Island, Bobby began envisioning himself as a head coach.

“I knew I was ready to take control and maybe run my own team,” Bobby says. “I needed more of the experience of running a team, practices and all the stuff away from the court. I got a chance to see all that with Danny.”

When the University at
Buffalo courted Bobby last spring, he didn’t commit to the head coaching position right away. He needed to consult his closest peers.

“What we put together was great,” Dan says. “He owed me nothing. I did play a role in convincing him to stay together and do it at a higher level (at Rhode Island). I didn’t want to do that again. He gave me three backbreaking years.”

To make the decision final, Bobby needed to hear from another familiar voice. He made the call to one of his biggest supporters, who was preparing for the Sweet 16.

“The very first thing I said was that he was ready to do this,” Krzyzewski says. “He paid his dues as an assistant. I told him he was exceptional and people believe that. I also told him to pack some heavier clothing. They get more snow there than in Jersey City.”

A couple days later, Bobby Hurley touched down in Buffalo. His hiring would announce his official return to college basketball, right where he was supposed to be.

Jarryn Skeete was speechless. Moments before he was announced as Buffalo’s new head coach, Hurley offered a few opening words to his team. Skeete was a toddler when Hurley was guiding Duke to consecutive Final Fours. But he knew about his coach’s legacy.

“I was shocked,” Skeete says. “I knew who he was right away, and I was excited to get to work with him.”

Fast forward to that work on a June afternoon. Hurley pushed Skeete through 30 minutes of intense and precise skill work. Hurley wants his team to maintain an uptempo pace at both ends this year. Skeete’s sweat-soaked tee was evidence of that philosophy, changing from light to charcoal gray by the conclusion of the workout.

“I feel great about the players’ commitment up to this point and where we’re headed,” Bobby says.

Hurley Sr expects his oldest son to find his personal niche in coaching. Dad isn’t focused solely on having two sons as Division I head coaches, though. Actually, he’s more fascinated with the lives of his grandchildren.

“Bobby and Danny are using their basketball experience to coach and are comfortable with it,” Bob says. “They’ve found they were good at it. I never really thought [being Division I head coaches] was going to happen. It is surprising.”

What isn’t surprising is Bobby finding his way back to college basketball. It is where he experienced his greatest achievements. Coaching at UB also completes the family’s marriage with the game. Now, it is three voices in three different gyms. Perhaps that is the greatest victory of all.

Former Duke star Bobby Hurley will be making his collegiate head coaching debut this fall at Buffalo. But for the time being, he’s been very busy on the recruiting trail looking to land a few steals from higher D1 programs, and by the looks of yesterday, Hurley is already succeeding in doing so. From Scout.com: “Bobby Hurley and assistant Nate Oats prioritized four-star recruit Lamonte Bearden throughout the summer. On Tuesday, Bearden, a 6-foot-1 point guard, gave Hurley and Buffalo a verbal pledge. ‘I just like everything about them,’ Bearden told Scout.com. ‘I went to visit them last week. I love everything about it. I love the coaching staff, the A.D. and the whole team.’ Bearden also considered Oregon State, San Francisco and St. Louis. ‘Even though I didn’t visit some of these other schools, I just knew that Buffalo was the best school for me. They use a lot of ball screens and I like a lot of ball screens,’ he added. ‘I think I fit their program real well.’ Hurley had a lot success as a point and Bearden thinks he is the perfect coach to help him develop. ‘That was one of the reason I committed,’ Bearden said. ‘He was a good point guard. I think he can help me develop into a better point guard.’ The Germantown (Wisc.) High standout is ranked as the No. 22 overall point guard in the 2014 class.”

When we were planning out the latest issue before the season started, we took a leap and chose Kyrie Irving for a feature story. He hadn’t played a game at the college level and with a rough start, his inclusion could have easily backfired. But we were confident that Irving would make our decision stand up. As SLAM 144 hits stores around the country, Irving’s name is also reaching a national level after an impressive 31-point performance against Michigan State on Wednesday night. Putting Irving in the issue? Easiest decision we ever made. — Ed.

by David Cassilo

Kyrie Irving has a target on his back, and to begin to understand why it’s there, you need to look no further than his feet. Irving, this year’s top freshman point guard and a size-12 shoe, would have a bit of trouble filling the shoes of last year’s top point guard, John Wall, a size 13, even in the most literal sense.

But don’t tell Irving that. Don’t tell him it will be impossible to match the level our current cover subject was playing at last year. Don’t bring up all of the pressure that comes with being a freshman point guard taking over a National Champion. And forget about mentioning how he is expected to continue the legacy of New Jersey point guards winning titles at Duke started by Bobby Hurley and Jay Williams.

Irving has heard all that, and the point guard who has already been compared to the likes of Wall and Chris Paul isn’t too concerned about getting wrapped up in it.

“Quite nicely” would be the answer so far in Irving’s basketball career. Irving’s pre-college accolades already read like the beginning of a Hall of Fame plaque: McDonald’s All-American, New Jersey state champion, New Jersey Gatorade Player of the Year, gold medal at the FIBA U-18 World Championship. Not bad at all for an 18-year-old, but with every honor, there are even greater expectations.

“If I had to choose a point guard between John Wall and Kyrie Irving, I’d choose Kyrie,” Jay Williams says. “Wall is an unbelievable athlete, but Kyrie is an extension of the coach on the floor, who dictates tempo and isn’t concerned about his own.”

The 6-2, 180-pound PG started to build expectations like those behind his house in West Orange, NJ, playing basketball with the man responsible for much of that success-his father, Drederick.

“He’s kept me focused, and he’s been there since the beginning when no one knew about me,” Irving says. “Aside from being a fan, he’s also my father.”

His father was a great player in his own right, starring for four years at Boston University, where he is a member of the school’s Hall of Fame. His professional career took him to Australia, where Kyrie was born. When Kyrie was just 4 years old, his mother Elizabeth passed away, and it’s been just he and his father since.

After his sophomore year of high school, it became apparent that Irving was something special, and he, along with his father, made the decision to transfer from Montclair (NJ) Kimberley to nearby prep powerhouse St. Patrick, a team with a perennial bull’s-eye on its back.

“It’s the best decision of my life,” Irving says. “I was at the highest level, playing against and beating the best. I developed a toughness and confidence that I didn’t really have before.”

While developing those skills, he was also becoming a Garden State legend. In his first season at St. Patrick, Irving averaged 17 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game while leading his team to a state title.

At the same time, colleges were the ones really starting to target Irving, who had become the consensus top point guard in his class. His quickness and impressive handle were one thing, but the maturity and basketball IQ he showed was enough to have college coaches salivating.

Irving strongly considered Kentucky and Texas A&M, but an instant bond with Coach Mike Krzyzewski was enough for him to announce his commitment to Duke just prior to his senior season. “It felt like home on my official visit and with Coach K,” Irving says. “I’m really close to him. He said that he has a plan set out for me.”

Now the No. 1 freshman point guard in the country was going to a school viewed by many as college basketball’s Public Enemy No. 1. “We are the highlighted game on everyone’s schedule,” Hurley says. “Duke deals with that every year.”

The national spotlight would be on Irving every night to prove his worth, and that was even before people pegged him “the next John Wall.” Even before Duke won the title.

Before he could deal with that, he needed to finish his high school career as a marked man. However, his senior season and state title defense hit an unexpected bump in the road. Although Irving showed he could play with the bull’s-eye on him (his numbers jumped to 24.5 points, 5 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game), his team’s season was cut short due to unsanctioned off-season workouts, and Irving was unable to defend his title.

Although many, including his head coach Kevin Boyle, felt the team was unfairly targeted, Irving was able to do off the court what he has done so many times on it-turn a negative into a positive. “It was heartbreaking because I wanted to win another state championship,” Irving says. “But it all worked out because when I couldn’t play, I actually got to make it down to Duke vs. North Carolina, which was my first Duke game.”

After a summer spent winning the gold medal at the FIBA U-18 World Championship, Irving came to Durham to get ready for a more important first game-the first he will play in. Taking over as point guard for a defending National Champion can be daunting, but Krzyzewski has molded his team’s offense to adapt to Irving’s style of play. It is both a way to make Irving’s transition a smooth one, and a statement on what his coach already thinks of his freshman’s abilities.

“He’s a special player,” Krzyzewski said following the team’s exhibition game against St. Augustine. “I think he’s just mature, mentally and physically. He has great poise.”

Even with that maturity, one of the biggest challenges for Irving might be just getting his own teammates, who already have a chip, to follow him. While Wall may have taken the country by storm last season, it was Irving’s new teammates who cut the nets, and for his biggest goal, Irving needs to look no further than his own starting lineup.

“They already have a title, and I want my own,” Irving says.

And if he does that, those asking if Irving is the next John Wall or Bobby Hurley or Jay Williams might instead be asking, “Who’s the next Kyrie?”

DRF has the 411: “Former basketball star Bobby Hurley’s Ocala, Fla., farm will go on the auction block Oct. 5 as a result of PNC Bank’s foreclosure on the 140-acre property. Named Devil Eleven Farm in honor of Hurley’s jersey number during his famous career with the Duke University basketball team, the farm is a major asset in PNC’s attempt to recover about $3.3 million in loans and fees. PNC Bank began foreclosure proceedings in late April. According to a report Friday in the Ocala Star-Banner, Hurley listed the farm as collateral for a $2,531,165 mortgage and a $1 million credit line, of which more than $550,000 was used. Interest, attorney fees, and bank charges bring the total due to more than $3.3 million. Court documents filed by PNC Bank say Hurley last made payments on the mortgage and credit line in the spring of 2009. Hurley and his wife, Leslie, agreed not to challenge the foreclosure, clearing the way for the farm’s sale.”